There are a lot of aides on the net. I cant read music and play by ear. And it is difficult to play with those that do read music. I suggest that you get on the net and learn the scales and chords if you are not going to take lessons.

I frequently say I was self-taught by a teacher who knew not the first thing about music (someday maybe you'll hear the story of Big Little John, Little Big John, and Cochise....worth a [] at least). Can't read music, can't play by ear (but that's getting better as I get more familiar with the structure of music through exposure). Playing with others is perhaps the best teaching experience I've ever had....you can learn a lot by observing and listening, so my advice to wiggles is don't be afraid to join in jams.

I find scales a bit intimidating, since I have ABSOLUTELY NO theoretical foundation, but what I did find helpful was figuring out which chords usually go in the more common keys....at least that way if I heard someone say It's in D for dog at Pearl, I knew which chords to play, even if I didn't know which sequence to use until I had listened to a verse or two.

YT is FULL of instructional stuff....some easy to understand, some just too difficult for me, but every one has something that expands my knowledge base and someday perhaps I'll figure it out, who knows [:I] .

If you are going it alone then I suggest you use this resource and take the time to work through the process exactly as it's laid out there. I especially like the finger gymnastics aspect of Justin's approach. Apply patience and eat the elephant in little bites. Also, if you are truly just starting, it's worth remembering that, as with learning anything else worthwhile, sometimes it's great and sometimes it's a grind. You will get stuck, from time to time, on plateaus and think it is all going nowhere. That's exactly the time to play even more and grind it through. Then, one joyous day, you'll notice that you've just become far better than you were before.

Make sure you have a playable guitar. If you start out on a piece of junk, the journey will be far longer and tougher. I know this is a Washburn site but I can honestly say the D10 series has far and away the easiest action of any acoustic I've played (i.e affordable guitars). Getting the right guitar at the outset can make a big difference.

Good luck. Learn some simple three chord songs as soon as you can and sing 'em out! It's supposed to be fun.

If you are doing self learning you should have a practice schedule. It would be good to have some basic lesson to refer to for your schedule. Justinguitar is one of the best free online lesson you can learn from. You can learn faster if you have friends who already know how to play and can give you some playing tips.

An easy thing to remember to simplify learning how to play is that there are only 7 keys and 12 notes. Whole notes I mean. With that in mind, it isnt so scary to learn. I also agree with above comments. Find someone to play with.

I have been practicing for about a year now, some weeks a lot others not so much, do to time.but I notice when I go to the guitar store I sound as good as some of the other players now.And my girlfriends dad which can play says I sound good. I still get embraced when someone who can play real good, ask me if I can play.I just tell them I chord and noodle.My whole point to you is,12mnth ago I could hardly make a G C D A F chord. but stick to practicing all you can.and before you no it you will surprise your self. And I really like to sit and pass the time with just me and my guitars. If you get tired and put it down for a week or two, just remember, pick it up and keep on picken. Also youtube has tons of stuff,and if you have Netflix they have lots of good disk. Tom []